ADATA HD710 Review

Hard disks have become a way of life these days, whether you have enough internal storage for your laptop or you don’t. They are excellent for boosting your computer or PC’s storage capacity while being so portable at the same time.

You will find tens of hard disk brands on the market, making it a little hard to choose the best. Most people will simply look at capacity, but the bone of contention is in speed. How fast will your files transfer from your device to the hard disk and vice versa? You also want to spend a minute on the outer structure, seeing as that will determine how well yours can handle a nasty fall.

The price or brand will not matter that much if you get the ideal piece, no? Well, that being said, you don’t want to spend a fortune on a hard disk, however great. In this review, we look at ADATA HD710, a new version from a well-renowned brand.

Outlook Of The New ADATA HD710

The hard disk comes wrapped protectively in its case, with its connecting cable by its side as one of the accessories (actually the only necessary accessory). The cable is quite short, but you can comfortably fit in into your laptop. You may struggle a little with a PC, though. This default accessory is the only cable recognized by the hard disk, and so you are locked if you lost it (although you can always buy another). The connection port is tucked nicely at the bottom and protected by a silicone flap.

The outer material is rugged silicon that the company claims to be nail tough. The texture feels good in the hand, and it ensures it does not fall off even when you sweat. The outer guide looks like a pocket for the rest of the disk, which is how it absorbs shock. The hard drive is quite small, measuring 5.2 x 0.8 x 3.9 inches and weighing only 8 ounces, and so it is as easy to transport as you could imagine. It has a storage capacity of 2TB.

ADATA says that the disk is made of three silicon layers, with the first being the protective case that holds the drive and components in place. The second layer, silicon, is dust resistant, to prevent any specs that penetrate the outermost part go any further into the drive. The outer and toughest part is still made of silicon of a higher grade than the rest. The part is highly dust resistant.

Water and Dust Protection

The manufacturer says all compliances have been made to make this item water and dust resistant. It will resist water for up to 200cm underwater and will stay in for up to 120 minutes. The maker says it has passed the IEC 529 IPX7 test, which is military-grade and the toughest in its category.

The manufacturer further says the disk has been subjected to a 1.8m fall through the stringent MIL-STD-810G 516.5 military test to prove its ability to stand impact. The standard set limit for regular drop tests is 1.2m, and so this is a new record. Some Amazon reviewers have proved this to be true by dropping the disk from as far as three stories. No damaging impact was reported on the disk, not even a scratch, which means it lives up to its reputation.

Transfer Speed

The transfer rate is impressively fast, but that will depend on the speed of your data. The material you are moving will also determine the transfer speed. Say you have few files of smaller one-hour HD videos. You will experience the fastest speeds seeing as the read/write process is only copying data.The USB3 connection improves the transfer speeds even more and especially so when you are working with HD videos. Transfer speed for folders is relatively slow, especially if they are fragmented with tedious read/write procedures (but that applies to any hard disk). Overall, the transfer speeds for this hard disk are impressive.

Other Features

The short cable wraps around the disk, saving you storage space. You will find it at the top of the hard disk when you open the package, where it folds nicely even after you use it. It locks when you wrap it around, and so you will never be afraid of losing it in transit.

It has LED indicators at the front to show various ongoing. Blue lights indicate the disk is charging, which is the same color it will show when transferring data. When or if anything out of the ordinary happens, the G-shock sensor flashes red and then changes to a consistent red to communicate a disk error. When the shock passes or the error is rectified, the LED will flash blue to signify the resumption of normal operations.

Price

The best selling point of this hard disk is certainly the price. Even with its massive storage capacity and excellent build, it still retails at a much lower cost than most hard disks in its range. It wins accolades for being a renowned brand that has been consistent in quality for several years in operation.

The manufacturer utilizes an unusual kind of silicon to wrap the entire item, hence protecting the drive from damage.

Great price for a hard disk with its storage space.

Cons

The upper silicon cover may start to come off after using the disk for a while.

The mini USB port may become a bit hard to close after a while.

The glue that holds the covers together may come off if you drop the hard disk regularly.

The cable connecting the disk to devices is too short.

Made To Last

As with every device, this particular hard drive has a few shortcomings. The length of the cable is certainly the most evident. Laptop users will not find this to be an issue so much as PC users will. The rest of the specs are pretty good, though, and it is built for longevity.